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Posts tagged ‘it gets better’

Just discovered this beautifully done video. The creator was inspired by the sad story of Tyler Clementi and posted the video two months ago. Never too late to share though. My inspiration and Eric Cooper’s was the amazing Seth Walsh. We both agreed he was us.

When Tyler Clementi took his life (a student whose life eerily paralleled mine in so many ways), I decided enough was enough. I’ve felt a powerful kinship with him that I can’t even explain – and it stirred my soul to act. Something had to be done – I realized I had to find a way to speak up with my own unique voice to express what I felt in my heart.

When I first heard Sugarland’s song, “Stand Up,” I was moved to tears. I heard it right in the middle of the string of teen suicides last year just after we lost Tyler. After the very first listen to their song, I saw a very clear vision in my head…it was an anti-bullying video that matched the absolutely beautiful lyrics and music of Sugarland’s evocative and powerful song.

So, I present to you my way of speaking up and I hope that I will inspire you to do the same. I want you to help me raise awareness, and open up hearts and minds that may be closed due to fear, ignorance, or shame. I want you to help me fill mournful hearts with hope and love and inspire others to do the same. I want you to help me keep the promise I made to Tyler…. These teen suicides, these “bullycides,” must stop once and for all, and it starts with US.

So, I need YOUR HELP. Help start OUR movement. Help spread OUR message of love, hope, and change. It’s already begun… people are reposting this on their Facebook pages… and then others are sharing and reposting it! Some are sharing the link through personal email or twitter!! Join US in helping to raise awareness and make a difference in any way we can! Be a part of OUR MOVEMENT to stop anti-gay bullying! WE HAVE THE POWER TO AFFECT CHANGE!!!

If you’re reluctant to share our video, I leave you with one thought: JUST ONE person might have their eyes, ears, and heart opened for the first time. JUST ONE person may begin to think a little bit differently for the very first time in their life. That ONE person may have a gay sibling, child, friend, or relative… And that ONE person, may think differently about the gay youth in their lives. Think about the change that happens in society when people begin to simply THINK differently. Thinking differently IS CHANGE. Remember that YOU have that power. YOU can make a difference in somebody’s life. YOU can keep spreading our message of love, hope, and change. WON’T YOU STAND UP WITH US AND USE YOUR VOICE?

It is getting better, as you are getting stronger, as the other gays are supporting you. For the ones that are living in western countries, w/ much more liberal society, just think about the other gays in middle east, Asia and Africa that they have much more problems than you have. So be strong and live your life! We are all together and would help each other…

And what is life like for LGBT people in Iran? Not pleasant as Wikipedia notes:

Some Human rights activists and opponents of the Iranian regime claim between 4,000 and 6,000 gay men and lesbians have been executed in Iran for crimes related to their sexual preference since 1979.[16]

According to The Boroumand Foundation,[17] there are records of at least 107 executions with charges related to homosexuality between 1979 and 1990.[18] According to Amnesty International, at least 5 people convicted of “homosexual tendencies”, three men and two women, were executed in January 1990, as a result of the Iranian government’s policy of calling for the execution of those who practice homosexuality.[19] In April 1992, Dr. Ali Mozafarian, a Sunni Muslim leader in the Fars province (Southern Iran), was executed in Shiraz after being convicted on charges of espionage, adultery, and sodomy. His videotaped confession was broadcast on television in Shiraz and in the streets of Kazerun and Lar.

On November 12, 1995, by the verdict of the eighth judicial branch of Hamadan and the confirmation of the Supreme Court of Iran, Mehdi Barazandeh, otherwise known as Safa Ali Shah Hamadani, was condemned to death. The judicial authorities announced that Barazandeh’s crimes were repeated acts of adultery and “the obscene act of sodomy.” The court’s decree was carried out by stoning Barazandeh. Barazandeh belonged to the Khaksarieh Sect of Dervishes. (Islamic Republic Newspaper – November 14, 1995 + reported in Homan’s magazine June 10, 1996).

In a November 2007 meeting with his British counterpart, Iranian member of parliament Mohsen Yahyavi admitted that Iran believes in the death penalty for homosexuality. According to Yahyavi, gays deserve to be tortured, executed, or both.[20]

One controversial execution was the execution of Makwan Moloudzadeh (sometimes spelled “Mouloudzadeh”) on December 6, 2007. He was convicted of lavat-be-onf (sodomy rape) and executed for raping three teenage boys when he was 13, even though all witnesses had retracted their accusations and Moloudzadeh withdrew a confession. He was also aged 13, and ineligibe for a death penalty under Iranian law.[21][22] Despite international outcry and a nullification of the death sentence by Iranian Chief Justice Ayatollah Seyed Mahmoud Hashemi Shahrud, Moloudzadeh was hanged without his family or his attorney being informed until after the fact.[23][24] The execution provoked international outcry since it violated two international treaties signed by Iran that outlaw capital punishment for crimes committed by minors, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.[25]

Israeli TV host Assi Azar tells kids it gets better. Being a TV guy myself I am happy he did this because even in a progressive country like Israel bullying is still a reality for kids and especially LGBTQ ones.

Don’t think I have seen another video directly addressing the concerns of young Arabs in the project. Visit his website here.

To ALL LGBT Arabs – there is absolutely nothing wrong with you! You are not sick, perverted, or freaks. You and me, we are just like anybody else. I’m a regular guy who simply happens to be gay – thats all. We are human and we deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. People may disagree, people may think we are sinful and thats fine. That is their issue. You and me, we are beautiful. It can get better and it will get better for LGBT Arabs!